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KILPATRICK
DREW ADAMS
When the history books are written, 2017 will mark the year that Drew Adams rose
to the forefront of the amateur motocross ranks. The Cobra rider has found moderate success throughout his young career, most notably a fifth place in the 51cc (4-6) Lim- ited class at Loretta Lynn’s in 2015, but the streak of results that he has produced in 2017 will be difficult to match. The Tennes- see native started the year on a winning streak in the AMSOIL AX Ultracross class as well as the other mini classes, stacking up over a dozen victories. He had a dream weekend in the Georgia Dome at the end of February, winning the KTM Junior race in front of the Monster Energy Supercross crowd before dominating Motofest the very next day with two number one plates and
a second place finish. In the seven classes that Adams raced between the Millcreek Classic and the Daytona RCSX, he only finished off the overall podium once.The youngster dominated the 51cc (7-8) Limited class at the Gatorback Youth Regional, and is one of the favorites to do so at Loretta’s, but he may also be a surprise in the 65cc (7-9) Limited class when the racing action gets underway at the Ranch.
KAEDEN KNIFFING
It’s unexpected that Kaed Kniffing only has one year of experience competing at the coveted Loretta Lynn’s Amateur National Championships. He raced at the Ranch back in 2013 where he managed to score an eighth place overall in the 85 (9-11) Lim- ited class -- an impressive feat for his first trip to Hurricane Mills. The young Califor- nian has really elevated his game recently after joining the Rides Unlimited KTM
team by putting in the necessary off-the- bike hours at the W Training Facility in his home state. Kniffing has steadily improved throughout the year after slowly transition- ing from the Supermini to the 125cc ma- chine, scoring solid moto finishes at both the Daytona RCSX and the JS7 Freestone Spring Championship. By the time he ar- rived at the California Classic in early April, he really began to find his stride. The Rides Unlimited KTM rider scored a second place overall in the Schoolboy 1 (12-16) class and found himself in the top five in the 125 (12-16) class, strengthening his confidence as the season progressed. His results were even more impressive during regionals as he didn’t finish off the podium in any one of his classes, but a crash early in the week at Mammoth derailed a bit of his momen- tum. Nonetheless, Kniffing’s riding and fitness level are at an all-time high and he’ll undoubtedly be knocking on the door of the podium when the gate drops at Loretta’s.
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